Sprat

·noun A California surf-fish (Rhacochilus toxotes);

— called also alfione, and perch.

II. Sprat ·noun A small European herring (Clupea sprattus) closely allied to the common herring and the pilchard;

— called also garvie. The name is also applied to small herring of different kinds.

Sprat, Thomas
(1635-1713) Divine and writer of memoirs, b. at Beaminster, Dorset, ed. at Oxf., was a mathematicia...

Short Biographical Dictionary of English Literature by John W. Cousin
jack sprat
A dwarf, or diminutive fellow. ...

Dictionary of The Vulgar Tongue by Francis Grose
sprat weather
The dark days of November and December, so called from that being the most favourable season for cat...

The Sailor's Word-Book